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24 Lululemon Sale Hacks That Will Actually Save You Money

Is there such a thing as Lululemon sales? Are there ever any Lululemon coupons? Does cheap Lululemon even exist?!

Yes, it’s crazy expensive as far as athletic brands go and we all want to get our hands on Lululemon for less. If you really, really want a pair of Lululemon leggings, I want to help you offset the cost with these sales and out-of-the-box savings ideas.

1. Buy sold-out Lululemon leggings (and more!) directly from any store in the country — with free shipping.

When we don’t wait for Lululemon discounts, it’s because either we’re impatient or, more likely, we worry that an item will be gone in our size before it makes it to markdown.

And if you’re talking about online items or even your local store, you’re probably right. But when you consider the total inventory in all the stores in the country — everything changes. This is the way to get Lululemon cheap! (All you need is a little persistence and patience.)

When a marked-down item is sold out in your size at your local store, make a note of the style name. Go to Lululemon.com and look the item up. When you find it, select “Check All Store Inventory” and consider all zip codes.

Next, call up the store that has your size in stock and ask to do a “send sale order” over the phone with your credit card. The Lululemon store ships it to your house for free and you pay marked down sale price!

You can also check if nearby stores have items you’re looking for in the Lululemon app.

Since each store is a franchise, prices in store may not match Lululemon.com prices.

But if you purchase an item either online or in store and you find the same item is cheaper in the other place, upload a picture of your receipt and a picture of the item’s tag to the Lululemon live chat; the customer service team will process a price match.

Unfortunately, Lululemon does not offer a traditional price adjustment (like when you buy a top for $44 and ten days later see it on sale for $29 and request money back).

Lululemon discounts merchandise in stores and online every Thursday morning. The Lululemon sale section is called “We Made Too Much.”

Look for that pair of cheap Lululemon leggings online on Thursdays between 11 a.m. – noon Eastern Time and mid-morning in store.

4. Aim for 30% savings with Lululemon sales.

Big savings margins like 50% or more at Lululemon are nearly impossible to find, except for bras — you can save up to 55% on those! Aim for around 30% saving on everything else when you shop in store or online.

I studied Lululemon sales over a month’s time and created the table above to help map out price points and minimum savings goals. Leggings are the hottest commodity with the stingiest markdowns. Bras, jackets and bags have the largest margins and see deeper markdowns.

5. Black Friday at Lululemon is underwhelming.

When you’re trying to save money, it’s natural to assume Black Friday is a good time to shop.

But at Lululemon, this isn’t the case. Lulu’s retail stores and website don’t really “do” traditional Black Friday, in the sense that discounts get deeper than normal. Instead, the sale racks just get more merchandise on markdown.

Don’t totally avoid Lululemon during the holidays, though, because on Boxing Day (the day after Christmas), store discounts can reach up to 50%, depending on the item. Of course, it will be the wild colors and patterns that see the deepest discounts, not black leggings.

Following your local Lululemon on Facebook is the best way to learn more about your store’s seasonal sales and events.

Lululemon outlets sell both the current and last season’s original Lululemon merchandise. Prices are similar or slightly better than typical “We Made Too Much” sale racks or online prices. Aim to save 40% or more at the outlet.

Although these are no more, Lululemon warehouse sales used to happen once a year, and you could save 50% if you were willing to travel to the one store in the country to fight the crowds. (RIP warehouse sales.) Today, all of the inventory once reserved for warehouse sales is sent to the outlets.

Note that Sweat Collective discounts (see next tip for explanation) can be used at outlet locations but “send sale” orders cannot be processed, because Lululemon outlets don’t ship.

7. Start a local running club and apply for Sweat Collective to save an extra 25%.

The Sweat Collective is the Lululemon trainer discount. Not a trainer? That’s okay. Read on.

Lululemon wants local fitness leaders wearing their apparel, so they established a professional discount called the Sweat Collective. If you teach group fitness, personal train, or lead a running club, you can join the Sweat Collective and get a 25% discount on all your Lululemon purchases, regular price and sale, both in store and online.

My ex-husband leads an informal running club that meets four times a week. They have a Facebook page and a name, but that’s about it. He was accepted to the Lululemon Sweat Collective program immediately after applying online and received final approval three days later after uploading his running club schedule and answering some other simple questions.

Lululemon offers military and first responders like police, firefighters, EMTs/paramedics and correctional officers a 25% discount.

Spouses of active military (including RCMP spouses) are eligible for the discount, but spouses of first responders are not.

The Lululemon military and first responder discount gets shoppers 25% off everything in the store, including markdowns. There are no exclusions or limits. The discount must be used in store in order to show identification that clearly indicates military or first responder status.

Lululemon does not currently offer student discounts or teacher discounts.

Each store can vary with its quantity requirements, but the general corporate rule is 25% off for orders of 12 or more. Some stores will give quantity team discounts for as few as six of the same item. And some stores give 30% off instead of 25%.

10. All Lululemon sales are final — including “We Made Too Much” and outlet purchases.

The Lululemon reselling marketplace is so hot for many reasons — the main one being that sale merchandise cannot be returned. Any Lululemon discount is always a final sale.

So, always try on before you buy, and if you regret a purchase, rest assured Lululemon merchandise is extremely sellable online.

11. The best apps for buying used discount Lululemon are Poshmark and Tradesy.

Poshmark and Tradesy are two wildly similar apps for buying and selling used Lululemon merchandise. Tradesy is smaller and more focused on high-end brands. Poshmark is larger and more social driven.

For sellers: Both apps make it easy to list items from your phone. Both take about 20% commission on sales. (As a comparison, Ebay takes 10%.) Both send a prepaid shipping parcel for sold items. Both have customer support available via phone or email. Tradesy pays you in credit and Poshmark in cash. (Tradesy will give you cash for an extra fee.)

Search by brand and size like “Lululemon 8” then sort by “ending soonest” and “auction only” to play the bidding game. You’ll have the best luck if you do this on weekdays when eBay traffic is lowest.

Or, search for something specific like “Lululemon Sculpt Tank II,” and save the search to receive email alerts when new items matching your criteria arrive in stock. These alerts are especially helpful when a seller lists a competitive Buy It Now price and you can get it before anyone else sees it.

Are there fake Lululemon items on eBay? Knowing the wild west of the internet, probably. Protect yourself by shopping smart.

Sellers with huge quantities of new, identical items are more likely to be selling counterfeits than a seller with a single, obviously used item. There’s no foolproof way to avoid counterfeits, but trust your gut and ask questions!

13. And the best website for buying discount Lululemon is actually Facebook.

Listen. This picture doesn’t have anything to do with Facebook groups, but you have to agree it would have been a shame not to include it.

Dozens of great Facebook groups exist just for buying and selling Lululemon. They all require you to have a Paypal account before you join, and many have wait lists to join.

14. Lululemon does free hemming and sometimes repairs — even if you bought the item used.

Lululemon offers complimentary hemming on tops and bottoms.

The cool part? You don’t need tags or a receipt to request the alteration, and the items don’t have to be new. That’s in writing in the official policy!

Many Lululemon stores will also repair ripped seams and/or holes for free. So whether you’re buying used, damaged Lululemon apparel to wear yourself or getting ready to sell used, damaged apparel, you may be able to get free alterations at your local store.

15. Make every purchase with a discounted Lululemon gift card to save an extra 4-6%.

What’s a discounted gift card? Well, if you receive an unwanted gift card, you can sell it to websites like Raise.com for cash. Raise then turns around and lists the gift card for sale at a discounted price — like $24 for a $25 gift card (4% savings). We call that a “discounted gift card.”

16. Lululemon leggings and black everything are the hardest items to find on sale.

17. Expect to see Lululemon men’s line double in the next five years.

Women make up 60% of Lululemon’s customer base, down from 80% two years ago as Lulu has been aggressively marketing their men’s line.

Lululemon men’s apparel accounts for 26% of total sales and Lululemon plans to double men’s business in the next five years, according to CNBC.

Girls’ flagship Ivivva stores have been closing for the past two years, with the remaining seven stores set to close this year, according to CNBC. Girls’ apparel still accounts for 13% of Lululemon sales — you can buy items online.

With all the hype about growing their men’s line, expect to see Lululemon promotions attempting to lure in more sales.

21. Get a free bag when you shop in store or do a sale send order, but not when you shop Lululemon.com.

I shouldn’t get so excited about the bags. I really shouldn’t. I shouldn’t be able to sell them on eBay for over five bucks. But I do and I can.

22. Lululemon shipping is free and so are returns.

Process your return online, print a prepaid label, and drop it at a shipping center.

23. Lululemon return policy says you have 30 days to return everything but underwear and water bottles.

…And of course, you can’t return anything from the “We Made Too Much” rack.

You must create your return authorization within 30 days of receiving your order, or 30 days from your in-store purchase date. Unless you bought your item during the holiday season between Nov. 4 and Dec. 24. In that case, you get until Jan. 24 to return your purchases — that’s almost three months!

Official Lululemon return policy states that original tags much be attached. But in reality, their customer service is so awesome that you might be able to swing a return without tags.

Also take advantage of the Lululemon warranty! For example, I chatted customer service about my favorite leggings — they’re four years old but I found a hole in them the other day. I definitely don’t have a receipt! Customer service emailed me a form to fill out in order to be considered for a return even though they no longer sell my leggings. It can take 8-12 business days to get a reply and a return isn’t guaranteed, but Lululemon’s customer service team will go the extra mile to help you.

TIP: Enter your phone number at checkout when you’re shopping in store, and sign in to your account when you’re shopping Lululemon.com. If you do this, you can make returns without your actual receipt.

24. Lululemon’s employee discount wins at 40-60% off!

Full-time Lululemon employees get a 60% employee discount. Part-time employees under 25 hours get a 40% discount. For markdowns, employees can save up to 75% on the original price.

Employees can only buy for themselves with the discount. Entry-level employees, called “educators,” reportedly start at $12-13 per hour.

So, that’s that. Did you make it through?

Bottom line. Lululemon is friggin’ expensive. And while you can easily save with these in-store tips, in many cases you’re still paying quite a lot. Shopping the outlet and buying used and taking advantage of free repairs is a legit way to get into the brand without the cost.

If you want to shop Lululemon, there are ways to make it work. Or you can always cut out the Lulu logo from some masking tape, and slap it on the butt of your Target brand leggings and call it good. Up to you.